Spreading Comps - Hand spread vs. CapIQ Spread?

I just started my first year as an analyst at a boutique (actual boutique, 15 people) in NYC. In their comps analyses they typically just use CapIQ formulas to do the analysis and the only work involves generating the comp set. My intention is to lateral to a better shop after a year, and I want to be sure I have adequate modeling skills. Would it be worth the extra effort to practice hand spreading these comps analyses on my own time? I.E. doing the analysis manually by pulling all the filings and calculating EBITDA, multiples, etc. manually as opposed to using CapIQ formulas to do it all.

10 Comments
 

Best way to guarantee accuracy is to pull directly from filings.

That said...If you have a list of like of 20 comps, this exercise could take hours. If you right click on a number from CapIQ and hit "audit data" then you can see where it is pulling it from and either check all or spot check for accuracy.

The main area to be concerned about is EBITDA since they make their own adjustments. Again, you can see what numbers they are adjusting with the audit data function but it may not capture everything in the notes of the filings.

 

Similique quisquam asperiores mollitia nemo. Ut ducimus aut voluptas dolore.

Eum inventore voluptatem earum et libero a sint. Aut voluptatem molestiae ut ducimus ducimus cupiditate tenetur. Deleniti nihil animi amet officia consectetur et.

Est quod aliquid et rerum. Vero porro facere cumque non similique et et aut. Rerum accusantium molestiae occaecati cum. Optio magnam explicabo quis et iusto maiores.

Career Advancement Opportunities

May 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.8%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.2%
  • Guggenheim Partners 01 97.6%
  • Morgan Stanley 07 97.1%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

May 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.4%
  • Morgan Stanley 01 98.8%
  • Evercore 01 98.2%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.6%
  • Banco Santander 01 97.0%

Professional Growth Opportunities

May 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.4%
  • Evercore No 98.8%
  • Morgan Stanley 05 98.2%
  • JPMorgan No 97.6%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.1%

Total Avg Compensation

May 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (14) $434
  • Associates (43) $259
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (22) $179
  • Intern/Summer Associate (13) $156
  • 1st Year Analyst (75) $151
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (65) $101
notes
16 IB Interviews Notes

“... there’s no excuse to not take advantage of the resources out there available to you. Best value for your $ are the...”

Leaderboard

1
redever's picture
redever
99.2
2
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
3
kanon's picture
kanon
99.0
4
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
5
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
6
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
7
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
8
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
9
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
10
bolo up's picture
bolo up
98.8
success
From 10 rejections to 1 dream investment banking internship

“... I believe it was the single biggest reason why I ended up with an offer...”